


Fumbling to meet (we belong to one story)

by flawsinthevoodoo



Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Blow Jobs, M/M, Mutual Pining, background platonic soulbond, background polyamourous soulbond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-30
Updated: 2014-09-30
Packaged: 2018-02-19 08:27:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 8,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2381651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flawsinthevoodoo/pseuds/flawsinthevoodoo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eddie and Lu are meant for each other. Everyone can see it so why does it take so long for them to figure it out? or An Idiots Guide to Bonding with Your Soulmate</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Spark

**Author's Note:**

  * For [colbertesque](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=colbertesque).



> This is a gift for colbertesque and I hope it is to your liking. This is officially the longest non-academic thing I have ever written and contains a rather large amount of world building among the juicier plot points. The way this AU works is mostly a cobbled together result of a bunch of AU's I had read previously, I took bits and pieces from here and there. This was beta'd to the best of the ability of missandryson before she had to give up on it for irl reasons so any mistakes seen below are my own. It is structured in Five main parts from Eddie and Lu's POV's alternating. There is an Alternate POV chapter between each of those from the point of a Teammate. There are also quotes from in world books at the beginning of every other chapter that explain somewhat the bonding structure. I hope this is all clear. Enjoy the read!

> “The shelves of time are littered with tales of bonded pairs brought together by fate separated by life through circumstances both magical and mundane. We have watched as on both the screen and the stage as couples together in mind and apart in body struggle with the cards life has dealt them. These stories are as heart wrenching as they are common. Bonds often disregard the typical trappings of society bypassing class, religion, race and geography to bring together the people best suited for each other. Whether it is by the energies of the universe as many eastern culture believe, by god as the Christian sects to the west proclaim or simply a coincidence of science no one can deny bonding is an essential part of being human. ”
> 
> -Annata Holmes,  The Human Connection: Bonding in Historical Literature

**Phase 1: The Spark**

 

> “When fully compatible mates meet for the first time there has been a documented release of extra serotonin in the bondports of the brain as well as a small electrical discharge the first time both partners have bare skin contact. This is a sensation colloquially known as “The Spark” and is a sign that the bondports of both partners are preparing for a bond.”
> 
>         -  Bond Science: A Complete Guide to the Romantic Bond
> 
>  
> 
> “Bonding protocol varies nation to nation but in most cases it is customary for a compatible couple to indicate their willingness to proceed with their bond after the Spark with some form of token. Lack of such a token is seen as a potential bond rejection. In most nations a Token  will be a piece of jewelry of some kind. In Russia, this would be an exchange of rings to mimic a later bonding ceremony. In India couples are known to get matching Henna tattoos during this stage. In Australia paired piercings have been used to indicate bonding. Most of Scandinavia denotes a couple in the this pre-bonded stage with the exchange of cuffs made of some material important to the pair. Ancient Viking cuffs made of bent blades and chainmail have been excavated indicating the long history of this custom.”
> 
> -A Thousand Words For Love: A Cultural Study of the Global Traditions of Romantic Bonding

 

Their new goalie is a whirlwind of grins and excitement when he shows up training camp. He reminds Roberto of a puppy, all long gangly limbs and enthusiasm, as he bounces from person to person eyes sparkling with good humor. He spots Roberto and comes bounding over. His shoulders are angled in like he isn’t sure how big he’s supposed to be and his head is tilted so he is looking at Roberto up through his eyelashes but his grin big and easy stretching across his face.

 

“Hi! I’m Eddie, Eddie Lack. We, uh  haven’t really met yet.  I got called up when you were out last season with that leg injury.”

 

He thrusts his hand out in Roberto’s direction expectantly and Roberto has to grin a little at the kid’s attitude, a mixture of shy and over eager.

 

“Welcome to the ‘Nucks, buddy.”

 

He grabs the kids hand and pulls him forward bypassing handshake entirely for good solid bro hug. He’s going to be Roberto’s backup after all. He gets a little jolt when their hands meet and again when their arms brush in their hug. They are both laughing a little when hug is over.The kid is blushing, the flush running high along his cheekbones making the blue of his eyes stand out even more.  Roberto shakes his hand out.

 

“Static electricity, eh. Been running around in your socks?”

 

“Couldn’t resist.” Eddie replies a little sheepishly “The hallways are great for sock races here.”

 

Roberto meets Eddie’s eyes and finds he can’t look away fascinated by how stunningly blue they are. Neither of them speak for a moment, frozen there as if nothing else is happening before Daniel, ever the good captain, swoops in to break the tension.

 

“Eddie I think the goalie coach wants to speak to you before he have skate.”

 

Eddie nods and lets the elder Sedin pull him away not breaking his gaze until Roberto does turning back towards his stall as he speaks.

 

“Well it’s good to meet you.” He says pausing to give him a pat on the pack “Good luck out there.”

 

 The kid is practically vibrating out of his skin when he returns twenty minutes later and Roberto is starting to wonder how much of that enthusiasm is just nervous energy. But either way, he thinks, watching Juice’s eyes crinkle and  Kes’s shoulders shake with laughter, the kid is having a good effect on the room. He just hopes he’s not like that between the pipes because a nervous goalie makes mistakes and goalies that make mistakes don’t get to stay up with the big team and Roberto, well Roberto would really very much like it if Eddie got to stay with the team. With you a small part of his brain whispers. He ignores it.

 

It is soon clear that Roberto has nothing to worry about. The kid is golden between the pipes. Roberto is fascinated to watch as he settles into his crease, wide grin and elation bleeding away leaving fiercely focused eyes and tensed shoulders primed for action. Limbs that are overly eager and clumsy off the ice become imbued with some sort of precise grace between the pipes. Watching from the other end of the ice is almost distracting and Roberto has to remind himself more than once to keep his eyes on his end of the rink. The kid is aggressive in the net pushing guys out of the way and standing way up in the crease sending out chirps that have Roberto grinning. Who knew the kid was a wolf in puppy’s clothing?

In the locker room as they’re all pulling off their gear Roberto cant seem to help himself from keeping an eye on the kid as he happily chatters away with Tanev. Their stalls are on opposite sides of the room so Roberto has a clear view as the kid (Eddie, his name is Eddie) sheds his gear, gesturing wildly with his ridiculously long limbs. Whatever story he is telling has Tanev in stitches, laughing so hard he can’t get his own socks off. Eddie looks up catching Roberto’s eyes and grins wider. He thinks maybe he won’t miss Cory as much as he thought he would.

 

 


	2. Jacob Markstrom doesn't do Romance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob senses something new and interesting happening to his bond with Eddie

Jacob has known Eddie for years. They had bonded their first year together in Juniors and no one was happier than them to discover the bond was platonic in kind. Jacob is pretty sure he got the better side of this deal.The guy is pretty much the best friend a guy could ask for so when he feels a shift in their bond to something, maybe, a little romantic he panics. He doesn’t want a romantic bond. Not with Eddie.Not with anyone. Sure he loves the guy to pieces but he doesn't love love him.

His freak out gets to last exactly three hours before Brandon asks him what up. He has a little bit of a break down and ends up admitting a lot of stuff he didn’t think he really wanted Brandon to know but well he asked. It takes approximately forty minutes for him to get through it all and by the end Brandon is staring at him like he’s a dog that’s done some strange new trick,two parts aww that’s so cute, one part wow that's weird.

He completes the dog image by patting him on the head and telling him fondly “Yeah, you’re being dumb about this. The romance thing? Has to have two interested people. If you’re not interested then it’s not your bond.”

With that little nugget of wisdom he steals Jacob’s bagel and leaves. Jacob is torn between relief he doesn’t have to hash this out with Eddie over their weekly Skype call and a kind of giddy pride that Eddie is going to have a bondmate soon. This guy sure better be fantastic Eddie deserves the best. And Jacob? Deserves another bagel.

 

 


	3. Phase 2: The Pull (Physical )

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get physical for Eddie and Lu (though not the way you'd think)

> “Partners with a phase two will find an increased need for physical contact. If it recommended that partners in this phase spend 4 to 5 hours together daily with a minimum of 30 minutes of prolonged physical contact. Refusing your mate physical contact during this stage may result in symptoms resembling the flu. Further deterioration of health overtime has been seen in stronger bonds.”
> 
>         -  Bond Science: A Complete Guide to the Romantic Bond
> 
>  
> 
> “It is common in many cultures the world over for the members of a bonding pair to, in the beginning stages of their bond, adorn each other with little tokens of affection and personal items such as childhood treasures or clothing carrying their scent. In Japan ribbons worn by one partner are tied around the neck of the other or pinned over their heart to symbolize their closeness even when they are apart. We have depictions on pottery of early civilizations that depict what we believe to be the exchange of similar objects between bonded pairs and the writings of noted roman bond philosopher and poet, Sappho, indicate that she would “anoint cloths” with her scent for her bondmates to “sooth the bond” while they must be apart.”
> 
> -A Thousand Words For Love: A Cultural Study of the Global Traditions of Romantic Bonding
> 
>   
>   
> 

Sharing a room with Lu is a study in self control. Being this close to someone he wants and doing nothing about it is so odd for him. He is normally so straight forward about things, there is no need for deception that only leaves one of you upset but this is the big show and he doesn’t want anything to screw up this chance. Being back-up to Roberto Luongo is a dream come true and just because the guy sleeps in the buff and looks a wet dream come to life doesn’t change how easy it would be for him to lose everything if he loses focus. So he keeps his head in the game and if his back pat last longer than unusual, lingers a little, no one comments because hey Eddie’s an affectionate guy right? Nothing to see here.

 

Lu doesn’t make it easy though. Every time Eddie turns around the guy has a hand on his shoulder or around the back of his neck. If Eddie didn’t know better he would think the man was flirting with him but every time Eddie thinks a conversation might be going that direction, every time they get lost in each other’s eyes, Lu pulls away. It’s not in any obvious way, he doesn’t shut Eddie down entirely he just doesn’t - doesn’t touch him as much. There are no hugs, bro or otherwise, no friendly arms around his shoulders no forehead touches after a hard practice. It never lasts long, these Lu-less times, but everytime it happens Eddie feels so shitty, so down, his game suffers. To make things worse Eddie seems to be allergic to something up in Vancouver. He keeps getting these headaches and sniffles, wakes up some mornings will a clogged head and fuzzy brain, with limbs that feel like weights have been strapped to them. He used to get hayfever but hasn’t had it in years but with all the new flora around he guesses it’s not too surprising. The longest bout so far has been a day or so but all the same it kind of sucks. He must look pretty pitiful on those days because Lu always pampers him, bringing him “anti-cold” tea and giving him backrubs when the one’s from the trainers just don’t cut it. Lu gives the best backrubs of anyone Eddie has ever met. He always feels so much less achy, reinvigorated afterwards it’s ridiculous. Juice looks at him like he’s lost his mind when he brings it up.

“Stork, man, I’m pretty sure Lu gives terrible back massages, Scneids used to bitch about it all the time.”

Eddie frowns a little then just shrugs Cory must just have been picky about his masseuse because Eddie has exactly zero complaints about the quality of Lu’s massages except that he maybe wishes they would never end. Though that has less to do with massages and more to do with really really wanting Lu’s hands on his body longer. Those massages are pretty much the only bright light of his allergy days which are getting more and more frequent. He should probably go see a trainer about them but the season has started and everyone is so busy it’s hard to find the time.Besides they’re nothing a few cold meds and a cup of Lu’s tea can’t handle.

 

The season starts off with more of a whimper than a bang.  But Lu really gets his shit together pretty quickly and Eddie has never been more excited to get up in the morning. The only downside to the season starting was the sudden lack of Roberto in his life. He hadn’t realized how much time they spent together in their room until suddenly he was living alone for the first time in years. Not seeing Lu first thing in the morning and last thing at night takes a little while to get used to and Eddie finds himself restless, pacing his living room and hitting the weights in an attempt to wear himself out so he can sleep without the sound of Lu’s steady breathing from across the room. He even finds himself missing the snoring. It is getting kind of ridiculous. He finds one of Lu’s shirts when he finally finishes unpacking from camp and ends up wearing it one night when he is feeling particularly shitty. He hasn’t gotten around to doing laundry lately so it is pretty much his only clean shirt, or not so clean shirt he finds out when he puts it on and gets a huge whiff of Lu’s cologne. He looks around for another shirt but gives up to go flop down on his couch and flip through channels until he’s supposed to eat again. He must have been more tired than he thought because he wakes up to the sounds of Lady Gaga blaring the snack alarm he set on his phone. Eddie stretches out feeling better than he had in days and wonders if maybe he has just been sleep deprived lately. He resolves to drink less coffee and see if that helps.

 

Eddie is trying not to overstep his bounds but he just can’t help himself, it’s like Lu has some kind of gravity always pulling him into his orbit. He knows it looks a little pathetic,like a whole lot of hero worship, from the outside but getting to spend video reviews pressed against Lu’s side, getting to spend team dinners grinning at him from across the table, getting affectionately hip checked and shoulder bumped because he was always just right there, was worth any amount of ribbing he gets for following Lu around with stars in his eyes.

 He holds out asking for anything more until their first real road trip. They are in Philadelphia when he tries to ask Roberto to dinner the first time. Somehow instead of the low key, maybe more than friends, dinner he was going for, he finds himself sitting in a steakhouse with Kes and Hammer, with Lu no where to be found. He tries again when they’re in New York but Lu waves him off distracted by something Juice is saying. Eddie eats alone in his room that night. Thank god the next day is a travel day because Eddie wakes up feeling like everything he ever ate wants to make a return trip. He can’t even imagine trying to skate in that condition. The plane ride is no picnic either but at least he can be close to stationary as he battles with his aching bones and roiling stomach. The guys leave him alone in the little blanket cocoon he forms in the back of the plane. Chris stops by every once and a while to “make sure you’re still breathing dude, because you look pretty dead” and ask “are you sure you don’t need anything?”. Eddie can only sniffle and shake his head no.The only thing he really wants is Roberto who doesn’t so much as look at the back of the plane the entire flight.

 

 


	4. Chris Tanev Deserves a Nap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris is going crazy, or more accurately his friends are trying to drive him there.

Chris is going crazy, or more accurately his friends are trying to drive him there. On the one hand he has the grossly romantic newly bonded trio of Juice, Kes and Burr spewing their happiness everywhere one second and snapping and snarling like a pack of feral dogs the next.Perfect bond his ass. On the other hand he has Eddie his buddy and his increasingly obvious hard on for their starting goalie who apparently cannot handle his own goddamn feelings for the aforementioned Stork because he “doesn’t want to take advantage Chris”.Like his eyes weren’t glued to the guy from the word go. Some days Chris feels like he might strain something with all of the eye rolling his friend group causes. Being friends with this glorious bunch of idiots means that Chris spends the entire flight being their gopher and everyone elses inflight entertainment as he runs from checking on Eddie for Lu, to getting a blanket for Alex who isn’t speaking to Kevin right now, to making sure Kes is “just tired not really mad because he’s not sitting with either of them and sure they can feel him but it can’t hurt to ask can it?”. If one more thing goes wrong, even slightly, he’s giving up. He’d rather block a Shea Weber slapshot than deal with any more emotional messes. God he wishes he had actual adults for friends instead of hockey players because only here would he be the responsible emotionally mature one of the group.Fuck it, Chris needs a nap.


	5. Phase 3: The Link (Emotional)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Feelings are messy.

 

> “During this stage the bondports of both partners are being cleared in preparation for a completed bond. This in conjunction with the continued periodic release of bonding hormones often causes a certain level of emotional sharing often termed “drift” between the partners. The amount of sharing can vary based on the depth or “level” or the bond. In some cases both partners will experience the full emotional spectrum of the other but the most common reaction during this stage of the process is the minor sharing of extreme emotions only.”
> 
> \-  Bond Science: A Complete Guide to the Romantic Bond
> 
>         
> 
>  
> 
> “There is a rich mythology surrounding the Link. The idea of emotional sharing is tied into the narrative threads of writings across centuries and continents. Something about this phase of bonds speaks to our internal desire for the other person in a relationship to fully “understand us” at our core and what better way to do that than to literally feel as we feel. There are a myriad of examples that demonstrate just how deeply this narrative trope is entrenched from the chinese legend of Madame White Snake to the more modern love story Romeo and Juliet.”
> 
> -A Thousand Words For Love: A Cultural Study of the Global Traditions of Romantic Bonding
> 
>   
>   
> 

Roberto wakes up the morning of the Classic grinning. He hums to himself as he makes breakfast and all the way to the rink. He’s always wanted to play in an outdoor game and he can’t wait to hit the ice. He is thrumming with anticipation as he navigates the unfamiliar hallways of the stadium. The guys are all in high spirits when he finally finds the room joking around and goofing off. Kevin is giving Alex a piggy back ride, crashing around the huge space of their new room. His pads, specially done just for that day are all laid out in his stall and he has to force himself to walk calmly as he crosses the room to reach them. He looks up and meets Eddie’s eyes grinning as they gear up. The guy looks like a kid let loose in a candy store babbling happily to an equally excited Frank arms swinging wide in wild energetic arcs. It’s only the barest scraps of dignity that keeps him from doing the same. Torts still hasn’t told them who’s starting the game but Roberto is confident it’s his spot and he tells the media as much when they ask. It’s a gamble but you don’t get to be the starting goalie for a team with out a little arrogance and a healthy dose of good instincts. He is flying high when they hit the ice letting Higgy’s kid take shots as the guys families zip this way and that across the ice. Eddie is mic’d up with a go-pro on his helmet so Roberto stays pretty much to his side of the ice. It is bad enough that Chris gets on his case for mooning after the kid he doesn't need their entire PR team to bear witness to his ill advised crush on his back-up. Not interacting doesn’t mean he can’t watch though. Eddie is in his element out there dashing this way and that cheery smile on his face, laughter high and bright cutting through the chatter of the ice. He jokes with the guys as they take easy shots,though Roberto is pretty sure they’re mostly aiming at the camera on his helmet. Smiling a little ruefully when Chris catches him unaware with a lame wrister from the dots he loses himself in the shine of the ice in the sunlight, the sting of winter air in his lungs and the stretch of his slowly limbering muscles.  By the end of skate he feels relaxed and a pure joy unencumbered by the day to day stresses accumulated over years of fighting to be a starter in the NHL. He honestly cannot remember the last time hitting the ice made his feel this way. He wishes it could be like this all the time. He is pretty sure it has been years since he was this on his game, this ready for a fight.

 

Torts calls both he and Eddie over after skate his face just about as emotional as it ever is, which is to say, blank. Roberto has learned to trust his instincts over the year and his past experiences with Torts have all of them screaming at him that something is wrong. He has that hunched confirmed with the first words out of his mouth.

 

“Eddie you’re in net tonight. I know you wanted to go out there Lu but the kid has been on fire lately and we’ve got to go with the guy who hot, yeah?”

 

Roberto feels a weird roil of emotions run through his gut a bastard mix of elation and crushing disappointment threaded through with a hint of guilt. He grits his teeth against it and grins  at Eddie with as much grace as he can muster.

 

“Good luck, Stork. You’ll be great out there.”

 For the first minute Eddie looks like someone took a two by four to his head but he recovers quickly looking happy again. Roberto has been watching him long enough recognize the smile for the mask it is. Eddie shifts his weight from foot to foot and bites his lip not meeting Roberto’s eyes and Roberto hates the nasty little thrill of pleasure that runs through him at the knowledge that Eddie isn’t comfortable taking his place.

 

Both of them have made a living off of being able to ignore the immediate past to get through the present though so Roberto bottles up his feelings for later examination, like film review, and slings a casual arm around Eddie’s hunched shoulders.

 

“Let’s go get some lunch, we can discuss Spezza’s backhand, eh?”

 

Eddie frowns, forehead wrinkling. “Lu you know I wouldn’t have taken this from you. I know how much you wanted this an-”

 

Roberto slides his hand up to wrap firmly around the base of the kid’s neck  and gives him a little shake.

 

 “It’s alright kid. You didn’t do a damn thing but do a good job for the team. There no way to be mad at you for that” and Roberto didn’t know it until he said it but it’s true. He can’t hate the kid for this or even begrudge him the chance, not when he can see the cheerful spark coming back to those goddamn blue eyes.

 

The game is a shitshow. Eddie normally so athletic and graceful in the net seem sluggish, always finding himself out of position for the next move he needs to make. All of the excitement of the Classic seemed to have drained out of him and with every rendition of the “We want Lu” chant he could see tension increasing in the tilt of his shoulders and the clench of his jawline. Roberto wishes he was out on the ice in his place, though he’s not sure anymore if it’s because he wants to play or because he wants to protect Eddie. This is why you can’t get any closer to the kid Roberto thinks to himself and shakes his head. By the time the second period is up Roberto is just as tense as Eddie appears to be. He’s pretty much chewed every piece of gum he could get his hands on, a nervous habit he thought he had better control of, and he can’t sit still on the bench. Thankfully the cold has all of them a little fidgety so he doesn’t look too out of place.

Eddie seems shell shocked when he comes off the ice eyes wide and unblinking, movements stiff and clumsy, even more than goalie gear accounts for. Roberto tries to comfort him but it’s not in his nature to sugar coat things and Eddie has been pretty bad in net today for all that the guys have been playing terribly in front of him. In the end Roberto just tells him to employ a goalie’s best tactic, forget the last period and focus on the next. It is easier said than done but by the time they file back out into the stadium the tight set of Eddies shoulders conveys more stubbornness than panic.

They don’t win and that always sucks but Roberto isn’t really prepared for the crushing sense of failure that hits him as the game is called. He flags Paul, their PR guy, over when the hit the locker room and lets him know that he won’t be doing a post game interview. The look Paul gives him almost makes him reconsider but he’s so unsettled he just gets his gear off and heads for the shower instead. Roberto doesn’t like being out of control of his emotions. He needs to get a handle on whatever this is and fast.

 

 


	6. Rookies don't get enough credit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frank Corrado is discovering veterans can be idiots

They all get told the same basic shit in development camp and again their rookie year in the big league. There were pamphlets and a stupid little power point with titles like “The Handshake line: What to do when you bond with the enemy” or “How to deal with a bond during playoffs”. It was painfully obvious that whoever wrote them had never played hockey and only had a passing acquaintance with the players but they did get the point across. Bonds could get you whenever wherever and could totally fuck up your game. None a single one of those things tells you what to do when you think your teammates are bonding and they’re fucking it up. Frank had seen them meet that first day at camp, seen the way Eddie always leaned towards Lu and the way Lu always seemed to make room for Eddie beside him. He had thought he’d seen a spark, a small flash, when they met and at first he had assumed they were bonding. When weeks later they both seemed to be single and not at all together with each other he assumed that his eyes had just tricked him. After all Alex, Kes and Kevin had just formed hockey’s most confusing bond since Bure and Linden so maybe he was just prepared to see that kinds of thing everywhere now like conditioning or something. But then Eddie had started getting sick all the time and Lu had seemed depressed and run down and Frank realized that maybe he had been right the first time and his teammates were just idiots. They never gave a seminar on how to deal with that.


	7. Phase 4: The Partial Bond (Mental)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie isn't feeling so great after the classic and The Trade doesn't make things better.

> “At this point the bond ports are fully cleared and prepared to complete the bond. As a result partners in this phase typically experience significant thought bleed and increased emotional drift. All of the symptoms can become severe and detrimental to everyday life if consummation is postponed. During this phase it is advised that the bond ports of both partners are monitored closely as over exposure to bonding hormones has been known to have some permanent negative effects. Partners who fail to bond within 48 hours of reaching this stage will suffer from severe flu like symptoms - fever, chills, head and muscle aches - as well as an increased potential for seizures. In extreme cases one or more partners have fallen into comas lasting upwards of ninety days.”
> 
>         - Bond Science: A Complete Guide to the Romantic Bond
> 
>   
>    
> 
> 
> “In many cultures once a bonding couple exhibits signs of a mental connection it is time for a bonding ceremony. Regardless of culture this is a time for a couple to prepare for their bonding ceremony and their future together. In certain Native American tribes, where bonding couples weave a cloth of their own design starting the day they achieve a spark, this is the time to finally pull it from the loom. This is the cloth that will be used to bind their hands together during the bonding ceremony and it will hang in their home forever after as a sign of their dedication to one another. In Finland bondmates at this stage will each receive a unique brand on their bicep to forever mark them as a matching pair. ”
> 
>     -A Thousand Words For Love: A Cultural Study of the Global Traditions of Romantic Bonding

 

Eddie is in pretty bad shape after the Heritage Classic, angry at himself for not doing better, angry at himself for not being Lu, at people for demanding Lu, for not trusting him in net, and angry at Torts for putting them all through this rollercoaster of a season by not being clear about his choices. Eddie doesn’t think he’s ever been this angry before. It is a strangely foreign feeling, as he is generally pretty even keeled by nature, but if there was ever a moment to get mad and rage at the world it was that next day. He’s already at the hotel after morning skate getting ready for a quick nap when his phone starts buzzing. It has gone off four more times before he can even get accross the room to pick it up. He sees a missed call from Perry. He has a weird feeling of dread pooling in the pit of his stomach as he waits for him to pick up. Their conversation is short, sweet and absolutely awful. Eddie stares at the phone in his hand panic creeping in along his limbs. He comes back to himself with the uncomfortable prickle of commercial grade carpet poking into the window of skin between his shirt and shorts. He isn’t sure how long he’s been there but there is someone knocking at the door. He groans a little as he unfolds from his highly ill advised position on the hard floor between the beds. He is still shaking the stiffness out as he opens the door to find Lu standing there, dressed in his travel suit with his packed backs sitting beside him. He is grinning so bright and so wide without a trace of the sharpness that usually lurks there. Eddie thinks he’s going to be sick. Lu’s grin dims to a small sympathetic upturn in his lips in the face of Eddies expression, his eyes gently begging Eddie to be happy for him. And Eddie finds that he is happy for him, eager for him to be in a place where he will be appreciated for his talents and excited for him to able to return to a place he thinks of as home. He just also wishes that that place could have been there with Eddie instead of Florida without him. Unfortunately, Eddie doesn't know if there are even words in english to express all of those feeling so he just extends his hand out to Lu in a strange mimicry of their first real meeting.

 

“Good Luck, Lu.” Eddie is proud that his voice doesn’t waver as Lu uses his hand to pull him into a hug. He tries to memorize every second of the experience, the press of Lu’s muscles through the fabric of his shirt, the gentle scent of his cologne, the softness of his eyes at close range.

 

Lu disengages from the hug and departs tossing a “See you around, Stork.” over his shoulder as he goes. Eddie stands in the hallway watching him go. He stands there long after the elevator doors close and Lu is gone from sight. Eventually he convinces his legs to move and returns to his bed to take the pre-game nap he had planned on almost an hour earlier.

 

* * *

 

  
  


He has a really bad allergy day on the tail end of the road trip, after The Trade. The capital letters are completely necessary. Henrik, who has been keeping an eye on him since Lu had left, forces him to go to Max, his favorite trainer. His head aches, his vision is a little fuzzy and he keeps thinking he’s hearing Lu. Which is impossible. Lu left him. The thought leaves him feeling even worse with that ache in the pit of his stomach growing larger. He thought he was keeping it together but the twinned look of concern on the Sedin’s faces tell him maybe he’s worse at this whole not showing his feelings thing than he thought. He’s supposed to be starting tonight. He’s not sure how that’s going to go, but he’s the starting goalie now and he has to be on point for the guys. He has to give them confidence. He has to...get a bunch more tissues because this is getting a little gross. He wishes he still had someone there to take care of him.

 

Max takes one look at him and hurries him away into one of the examination rooms off the hallway and calls the team doctor in. Eddie isn’t sure why his allergies need quite this much attention but if they can get him ready to be in net tonight he’s game for pretty much anything.

The doc comes in but he has a bunch of questions about his eating habits and sleeping habits and then stuff that has nothing to do with allergies.

“Have you met anyone new lately, it would be in the past few months, that you spend a lot of time with?”

 He has to laugh at that one. “Umm...pretty much the whole team? Except Henrik because he’s been out so much.” He shrugs.

 

The doctor frowns then goes out into the hallway. When he comes back he has the Bond counselor with him which is silly because Eddie’s platonic bond with Jacob is weak on their best days, no where near strong enough to need bond management.

 

The doctor starts talking but Eddie can’t be hearing him right because he can’t have bonded he would have felt it right? He would notice someone else in his head especially given all of the weirdness that had come with his bond with Jacob. The bond counselor starts talking and Eddie feels calm like he’s not himself, like they’re talking to someone else and he’s just in the room, then the feeling drains away and all he can feel is the nauseating wave of panic. His chest is tight, his hands are shaking and he feels like he can’t take a full breath. Then suddenly Jacob is in front of him, hands on his shoulders, telling him to focus.

“Breath with me, buddy. Come on, yeah, there you go. You're having a panic attack, ok? I need you to just keep taking deep breaths. Good job. Alright, we good?”

 

“I-I,yeah,I think so” Eddie cheeks burn with humiliation as his hands clench into fists. He hasn’t had a panic attack in years and now, with his job as starting goalie on the line with Lu gone and no hope of him coming back, is when his body decides to pull this shit? He has the worst luck.

 

“Cool, Look the docs want to come back in and try to talk to you again. Do you think you will be ok with that?”

Eddie sighs and runs his hands over his face, overwhelmed. “Give me a minute?”

“Yeah buddy. Don’t worry I’ll be right outside ok?”

Eddie nods before flopping back on the examination table. He had known right away when he had bonded with Jacob the slight throbbing in his head like a toothache and the alien feeling of another person sharing his mental space had been a dead giveaway but platonics were different from romantics, or at least that’s what everyone says. There should be something to let him know that he’s bonded, there should have been a spark, and cuddling, Eddie had been looking forward to the cuddling. He closes his eyes and concentrates trying to feel something out of place and there at the back of his mind is a slight warm glow, a warm glow that felt panicked? Eddie pokes it trying to get a feel for who it is. He feels realization on the other end and it’s-Lu?

 

 


	8. Dan Hamhuis Sees Everything

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not as ominous as the title implies

Dan’s been around the League for a while, his aching body can attest to that. He’s seen a lot of shit over the years and learned when to talk and when to keep his mouth shut. So when he saw Eddie come in that first day of Camp and just light up with Lu he knew that something was going to go down there just like he knew that Jannik was pissy all that week because his girl broke up with him for a Bond. He also knew that no one would thank him for interfering so he kept that observation to himself and just watched and waited for something to happen. Something did happen though not what Dan had expected. Lu’s trade blindsided them all a little bit. Eddie handled the trade better than Dan thought he would, though he thinks the little talk Lu had pulled him away for before he left had helped. Dan changes his mind when he sees the way Eddie lights up when Lu visits their locker room, startling in his Panthers red among the soothing Canucks blue and green. Where Eddie before had been cheerful and somewhat lighthearted, Eddie with Lu in the room was incandescent, happiness pretty much radiating from his skin as he stood hips canted towards Roberto in what Dan is betting is an unconscious plea for Lu to mate with him. Dan is thankful to see that Eddie has a similar effect on their former goaltender. Though it is a little less obvious, the way Lu’s smile brightens and stance gentles tell Dan all he needs to know about the two of them. He is just starting to despair of either of them seeing it.


	9. Phase 5: The Full Bond

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eddie and Lu consummate their bond

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first sex scene that I have really every fully written out so take it with a open and forgiving mind. Stuff in ** implies mind to mind communication.

> “Once a Bond has been consummated it enters Phase 5. Consummation is achieved through a bite delivered  to the mating gland in the neck to release the correct brain chemicals and normalize the hormone levels of both partners. The bite is generally given during intercourse but can be delivered at anytime once a bond has reached Phase 4. After the bite, Phase 5 bond partners’ bond ports will become fully linked and will experience a complete mental and emotional connection. Due to the fragility of the human psyche after the first few hours of a Phase 5 completion the mind will erect a series of shields to protect itself from the other mind. These shields can be raised and lowered at will by both bond partners. In some extreme cases these shields will fail to appear. Temporary shields can be induced by a medical professional until the natural process of shield creation can be jumpstarted. Partners with multiple bonds or bonds with more than two particpants should consult with a bond specialist as shielding in such cases is extremely complex and unfortunate complications can arise.The strength of the bond will determine the level of shields necessary as well as the decrease in bond sickness and an increase in the distance possible between partners over time. ”
> 
> \- Bond Science: A Complete Guide to the Romantic Bond
> 
>   
>    
> 
> 
> “The consummation of a bond is a time of great celebration, of feasting and music or of prayer and solemnity but without fail it is a time of utmost importance holding the weight of history in the many and varied steps leading up to the ultimate goal, a Full Bond. The Greeks host a five day long revelry,one day for each stage of the bond, culminating in a full day of feasting. In Russia it’s a five course meal followed by music and dancing. The Israelis have a five step purification ritual to get the bonded couple ready for their consummation. In Argentina each bondmate is thrown a separate party before coming together for a joining ceremony, often religious, where the rings, exchanged just post-Spark, are moved from the right to left hands to symbolize the consummation of their bond.”
> 
> -A Thousand Words For Love: A Cultural Study of the Global Traditions of Romantic Bonding
> 
>  

The moment they are in the same room together he can’t help himself Roberto just has to kiss him. Eddie meets him with just as much fervor pulling him down onto the bed in the middle of the Binding Suite his team had provided. Roberto pushes his hands under Eddies shirt running them down the firm muscled lines of his long torso before grabbing the hem and tugging it off. Eddie makes a noise of protest as the break in their kissing but helps Roberto get the shirt off.

 

Roberto pulls back a moment and just lets his eyes roam the sun kissed expanse of skin exposed there for him,all for him. Eddie lets him look his fill for a few moments before his amusement flows through the bond.

 

*You know you don’t have to just look anymore?*

 

Restraint loosed Roberto surges forward to capture that perfect smirking mouth, greedily drinking in the whine in the back of Eddie’s throat as he presses up to meet him. Their tongues tangle in a wet slick battle that leaves them both gasping in sync as Roberto pulls back for air biting at that full lower lip watching as the blue of Eddie’s eyes is swallowed up by pupil.

Roberto drops his head downwards never breaking eye contact as he delivers a line of sharp nips to Eddie's jawline before dropping to suck and lave at the dip of his collarbone bringing blood to the surface in a mark no one will be able to miss in the morning.

 

*Possessive?* Eddie’s amused voice taunts him.

 

*Proud* Roberto replies absently now focused entirely on the pair of  peaked nipples in front of him.

He pulls one delicate nub into his mouth, sucking and biting gently at the hardening flesh. He has to pull off panting wetly against the firmness of Eddie's pecs as Eddie’s pleasure jolts through him.

*They’re very sensitive*

*No shit. I’ve got to try that again*

 

He turns his attention to the other nipple determined to make the most of the emotional transfer. When that nipple is as rosy as it brother he pulls off and begins pressing a trail of kisses down Eddie's abs until he reaches his waist band. He yanks it back with his teeth and releases it letting the sudden shock of the pain run through them both making them shiver. Eddie whines deep in the back of his throat and thrusts his hips up at Roberto. He takes pity on him and pulls his shorts down his long and glorious legs. He leans back to look again. He’s seen Eddie naked before but this is the first time that he is free to truly admire what an amazing body his mate has. From the ends of golden brown hair to tips of his oddly long toes he is perfect and Roberto is filled with a feeling of such utter contentment he feels over full. He realizes he is grinning like a loon but he doesn’t care because he, they, get to have this. He presses an arm across Eddie's hips while he sucks another bruise grin changing to a smirk as Eddie’s whines turn pitiful and his hips helplessly twitch.

 

They still as Roberto buries his nose in his crotch, nuzzling the soft skin of his balls and gently laving them with his tongue before returning his attention to Eddie’s erection. He begins with a few gentle licks of the head before sucking it in. He revels in the weight of it in his mouth, the stretch of it and the sensation of smooth slick skin as he pulls back. He bobs his head a few more times before he establishes a rhythm altering pressure and pace to match the reactions he feels across the bond. He is so deep in he can’t tell where he ends an Eddie begins, he is giving and getting a blowjob and it is one of the top ten most marvelous and strange experiences of his life. They come together, come filling Roberto’s mouth and his pants all at once and Roberto hasn’t even touched his cock. He swallows before rolling over to grab for the towel on the bedside table. He gives himself a cursory wipe down before climbing up to flop down on top of Eddie pinning him to the bed burying his face in the crook of his neck. Biting absently as the sweat salty skin he finds there he works his way up to the swollen skin just beneath the sharp hinge of Eddie’s jaw. He noses gently at the spot, smiling a little as Eddie twines his hands in his hair and presses down while tilting his jaw up to better expose that delicate skin. He leans into the pressure of Eddie’s hand before catching that hot soft skin between his teeth and biting down.  His head spins and it feels as though the world has come sharply into focus, something in his skin settles as if he has become complete and he can feel Eddie’s own satisfaction but now there is a distance to it, an awareness that those are someone else’s feelings not his own.

 

*That’s it. That’s the bond*

 

*It’s done?*

 

*Yep. you’re mine forever* Roberto feels a small possessive thrill at the thought.

 

*Perfect*  Eddie burrows deeper into Roberto’s side, eyes at half mast, a slow, lazy, grin spreading across his face to match the utter contentment thrumming through the bond.

 

 


	10. In Conclusion or David Booth Doesn't Want To Know

When Eddie comes back to the locker room for the first time since his little “vacation” to Florida and Luongo, David is determined to ignore his slight limp. He is stubbornly refusing to acknowledge the masses of hickies dotting his chest and the ragged lines of nail marks on his back are a momentary distraction at best. But it is impossible to ignore the giant blatant mating mark, a full set of teeth marks red and purpling high on Eddie’s neck, too high for a collar to block or a scarf to cover. Eddie smirks a little every time he catches one of them looking at it, stroking it a little as he pauses putting on and taking off his gear. Occasionally Eddie forgets himself, his eyes gaining that glazed tone of someone communication mind to mind with their bondmate, and one of them has to go over there and bring him back or at least remind him he has things to do that don’t involve rechristening his consummation bed wherever that might have been. David isn’t sure at first what to do with the most surprising souvenir of Eddie’s bond, his confidence. Where as before he curved in on himself asking the world to make room he now occupies space as if the universe owes it to him to find room. In net the guy is pretty much a god, catching everything they can throw at him with the calmness and poise of a veteran. He accepts compliments and criticism with the same good humor Underlying it all is this sense that he knows he’s good enough and heaven help anyone who challenges him. Eddie Lack had finally come into his own. Who would have thought it would take a sarcastic Italian to make him realize his potential. Fate sure has a sense of humor.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> you can find me at http:// flawsinthevoodoo.tumblr.com where I make gifsets of hockey players being pretty and discuss other random brain farts.


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